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Text Twilight looked moodily at Luna as she looked at her pointedly, and then the violet unicorn sighed and rolled her eyes, saying distastefully: "You're asking a lot, you know. And while I… do admit, I don't… well… entirely mind when you and Scrivener… well…" Twilight stuttered to a halt, then she cleared her throat embarrassedly before saying flatly through her blush: "I'm both honored and a little horrified." "Good." Luna said comfortably, then she glanced towards the window as Sammy scratched at it from outside, peering in at them through his blue-flame eyes. "And oh, be quiet, little beast. For all his grumpiness, Scrivener Blooms does not mind nearly as much as he puts forwards. He is simply a little more… reserved than I am about his desires. I simply do not feel the need or urge to repress them. Now get thee hence or I shall seal thee in a pot for the next few hours." Sammy huffed at her grouchily through the window, then dropped away from it, and Luna rolled her eyes before she returned her gaze to Twilight, saying in a more-serious voice: "But… 'tis only a theoretical question for now, Twilight. Both myself and Scrivener Blooms will… see someone about these problems, perhaps Zecora with her vast knowledge of all ailments and potions for every problem, and if… there is a problem of some sort with me, as I fear there is…" Luna stopped, softening a little as she glanced down and murmured quietly: "'Tis funny. I can move the moon, Twilight. I can even move the sun, although not with the grace of my sister Celestia… and yet, imagine, to have all this power, to be unable to have a child of mine own. 'Twould be bitter irony… one that thou understand, does thy not? How it could make me feel so powerless, for all mine power. A foal is the ultimate expression of love and trust… and to not be able to share that with my daydreamer…" She shook her head a bit as Twilight gazed at her softly, and then she cleared her throat and looked up, saying firmly: "Enough whining though, there is work to be done. I assume thou hast been studying Celestia's scrolls and books of magic of the old?" And now Twilight grimaced a little, saying nervously: "I… I have been, Luna, but… she gave me some very, very serious stuff. I… I didn't think magic like this existed outside of horror stories and fantasy novels… and to be able to use things like this in real life, to… to be able to paralyze a pony with a single word, or to… to even kill…" "Magic is like any other tool, Twilight… it can be used as a grim weapon of destruction, a shield of protection, a hammer that builds and constructs… or even simply put on display like a showy, elegant blade, such as Trixie uses it for." Luna smiled a little, and Twilight nodded apprehensively before the female reached up and touched her shoulder as she leaned forwards and kissed her forehead, murmuring softly: "Mine sister and I would not trust thee with these skills if thou didst not possess such a strength in thee, and a knowledge of right and wrong most infallible. Thou even saved Pinkamena, Twilight… inside thee is a magic greater than my sister's blessings or my own darker arts. In some fantastic way, thou has mastered the ability to find peace and accordance with anyone who has even but a smidgen of emotion in their veins… anything that feels, thou art able to negotiate and make a bond with. 'Tis… truly enviable." She stopped, then smiled a little, saying quietly: "Head out to the front yard, Twilight, and we practice thy arts. As our faithful target is not here, I shall fetch some simple stands for thee to blast." "Alright Luna. Thanks." Twilight smiled awkwardly at her, looking warmly at the winged unicorn despite the blush still on her face, and Luna winked at her before she turned and headed towards the back door, slipping out into the yard and then making a face at Sammy as he bounced around, chirping loudly. She finally rolled her eyes with a sigh, saying irritably to the little creature as she walked down the dirt path: "Oh, thou art more of a prude than my sister. 'Tis what ponies do when they care for one-another. Thou would truly be horrified of just what occurrences occurred in my time, little creature… back then, 'twas more shocking if a noble did not have at least one mistress and a wife, instead of the other way around." Sammy huffed at this, and Luna rolled her eyes as she opened the door, deciding to ignore him… and then glancing up at the easel and softening visibly at the sight of it. She smiled faintly, touching the underside of her muzzle as she looked at the words: 'I love you' written in blocky letters over the canvas, with an awkwardly-drawn heart at the bottom. She smiled, lingering… and then Sammy chirped at her, and Luna glared down at him as the skeleton cocked his head and seemed to grin cheerfully, snapping immediately: "Tell anyone of what thou just saw and it's off with thy head!" But Samael only chirped at her in response, and Luna glared moodily at him before her horn glowed as she returned her eyes to the shed's interior, brushing the easel aside to grasp several small straw ponies on sticks with telekinesis, the three straw shapes glowing quietly as she muttered: "Thou truly art a noisome little wretch. Come along then, thou might as well join us." Luna grumbled to herself, making her way back towards the cottage, then carefully slipping around a hidden side path hidden in the shadows between cliff and cabin, the straw ponies floating along behind her and Sammy bouncing along at the rear. She emerged to see Twilight already at work, her eyes closed and horn glowing… and Luna paused to watch with interest as the unicorn arched her back with her teeth grit, horn growing brighter as in front of her, vines steadily twisted upwards out of the ground and wrapped together, forming slowly into a writhing, pulsing shape of a pony standing on its rear legs, the vines and plant life growing, transforming, warping… until it fell on all fours, green light glowing out between the vines from inside the plant golem as emerald light filled its sockets, the creature standing silently as Twilight wheezed and dropped flat on her stomach. "Most impressive." Luna murmured, and Twilight blushed embarrassedly as she looked over her shoulder, the straw ponies floating past to set themselves quietly up at the end of the yard before Luna approached the pony made of vines and pulsing plants, studying it curiously. "Yes, sister used to create these when we needed to send messages back and forth… or to check for traps or ambush, among their other uses. Thy magic power improves in leap and bounds, and 'twas not inconsiderable to begin with, Twilight Sparkle. More and more, I find myself impressed with thy ever-growing abilities… perhaps one day thou will be greater than even Celestia at her finest." "Thank you, Luna… coming from you, that means a lot." Twilight murmured, picking herself up and blushing a little as she smiled quietly, studying the plant golem as it stared back at her, seeming both intelligent and yet distant. "I don't think it'll last very long, though… I tried to hold back a little, not put too much power into the spell so I didn't fatigue myself." "Then let us make use of what little time this creature has." Luna said thoughtfully, looking towards Twilight. "I wish to see if thou can control it, as well as create it. And more importantly, how strong thy control over such is… for a talented or plain-willful unicorn can sometimes steal the control away." Twilight nodded, then she straightened and bowed her head forwards, eyes flashing as her horn glowed… and immediately, the golem cantered in a wide circle around the two as Luna laughed and nodded. "Excellent! Thou truly has been studying Celestia's books… then let us move right into seeing how strong thy direction is." Luna grinned… and for twenty minutes she and Twilight faced each other, their horns glowing, Twilight grimacing and trembling, sweat rolling down her body as she concentrated and pushed with all her might to control the golem as Luna pushed back, grinning widely, eyes blazing with confidence and starlight mane and tail whisking around her. The golem, meanwhile, ran back and forth from one end of the field to the other, stuttering in mid-movement sometimes as the two wills wrestled… before Luna's eyes flashed and she suddenly dropped her control, looking up sharply and running towards the bridge as she shouted: "Scrivy? Scrivy!" Twilight winced and fell forwards on her face, and the golem charged dumbly into the cabin wall before collapsing backwards and laying prone as the unicorn slowly picked herself up, looking towards Luna as the winged unicorn nervously pawed against the ground, breathing a little hard as her ephemeral mane snapped backwards… and then she gritted her teeth and Twilight looked up in shock as a battered Scrivener and Trixie stepped out of the trees and began to cross the bridge, Luna seizing the former in a tight hug for a moment before she stepped back as Trixie strode tiredly past and dropped flat on her stomach with a wheeze, Twilight running quickly over to the group. "Daydreamer, what has happened to thee?" "We were at the nursery, and the Bitterweaver nest seemed empty… I didn't think it was weird at first, but usually there's one or two around, right? Anyway, next thing I know, as I'm putting a second mandrake away, Trixie rambles something… and I look up, and there were centipedes as big as the great pythons charging at us." Scrivener grimaced after a moment, shaking his head slowly before Luna reached up and quietly touched beneath a large cut in his shoulder, looking at him worriedly. "It's… it's nothing, don' worry. Must have been when I threw myself against one of the boulders at the top of the incline… but Trixie and I pushed that down on the nasty little things and it took care of them. Most of them, anyway… she threw one of your bright flares at them and one of them tried to eat it and that didn't end so well for him. I'm… very glad I had her help." Scrivy smiled a little over at the pale-blue unicorn, who smiled tiredly back at him as Twilight helped her back to her hooves, and the normally-boisterous female said quietly: "Well, I am glad you were there too, Scrivener Blooms. I mean… Trixie could… not have done so well without… your help." She stopped, looking lame, and Twilight looked up in concern at the frown on Luna's face, her head lowering as the female said slowly: "Is that… unusual? I mean, there's all sorts of creatures in the Everfree Forest…" "Yes, truly, but 'tis rare to see any insect attain even half that size in these days… 'tis another effect of the spread of darkness across Equestria, I fear." Luna murmured, lowering her head and shaking it slowly. "The shadows influence growth in even their most vile and lowest of servants… breeding monsters foul and awful. Twilight, Trixie, we shall heretofore redouble our training and our efforts. We shall begin with basic offensive magic after I heal Scrivener Blooms." "I'm fine, Luna, really…" Scrivy began, and then he winced at the glare she gave him before nodding with a grumble, then adding awkwardly: "I only got two mandrakes…" "Then I shall blame Trixie for not retrieving the third in time, but be thankful that both of thee have returned alive from such a foul event… and Trixie, again it seems I owe thee some share of gratitude for the aid thou hast provided my husband." Luna halted, looking down at the pale-blue unicorn softly, and Trixie smiled a little before Luna glanced at Twilight. "Instruct her in the simple 'Bolt' spell. I shall return shortly." Luna gently nudged Scrivener with her muzzle, and he smiled a little before falling into pace beside her, the two heading to the cottage… and even after they returned, Scrivener patched up by magic and cloth bandages, there was a quiet tension in the air as Luna spent her time deep in thought, her mane pulsing with starlight as she gave short commands every now and then, working both Twilight and Trixie to the bone. The two left in the late afternoon after a short rest, both exhausted and worn-down… and then Luna quietly but firmly nudged Scrivener into the den to lay down with him, closing her eyes as they curled up together and he murmured: "You were hard on them today. Very hard… which means something's really worrying you, huh?" "Yes, Scrivener Blooms. Now come, we go to speak with Nightmare Moon together, if I can manage this." Luna said quietly, and Scrivy glanced up in surprise as the female's horn began to glow with a blue aura, her mane flickering gently against him as she smiled a little and curled their bodies tighter. "We are connected after all… the same blood runs in our veins. I like to think that on some level… perhaps we connect even at the soul." She closed her eyes as Scrivener closed his own, breathing softly… and a moment later, he felt a strange humming sensation pass through his mind, a buzz filling his ears before his eyes snapped open… and he looked dumbly back and forth in surprise as he realized he was standing beside Luna on top of an ancient stone monolith of some kind, that was lit from above by the light of the ivory moon. And across from them, Nightmare Moon stood on a slightly-raised dais, marble statutes of Centurions – leather-winged, sharp-toothed Pegasus ponies – stood to either side of the platform, posed on their hind legs, with heavy bowls balanced in their front hooves filled with blue flames that swirled and twisted. The two ponies gazed up at her as she looked back down, then leaned forwards with a sultry smile, saying quietly: "This is a delightful surprise, Luna… you brought your handsome husband to visit me." She stepped down from the platform, walking slowly forwards, moving with a strange sinuousness despite her size as her own darkly-lit mane floated and flicked around her, leaning down and nuzzling along the side of Scrivy's neck as he winced a bit, but couldn't deny the attraction he felt all the same as he bit his lower lip nervously… then Nightmare Moon laughed as she circled slowly around the two, Luna glaring at her almost-jealously as she slid a little closer to Scrivy before saying curtly: "Thou art part of me, Nightmare Moon, but all the same thou art also comprised of shards of darkness from an outside source, from an ancient and wicked thing, kin to the darkness that threatens us once more. My memories of the old days are not all clear… yet not so faulty that I forget thy stygian origin." "And you wish to know what information I have on this rising shadow… if it is truly a second coming of the great darkness that Equestria itself was born from, and is fated to return to." Nightmare Moon paused, saying meditatively: "My answer… is perhaps. I don't wish to lie to you, Luna… or to you, handsome Scrivener Blooms… so I cannot tell you for sure. Because my senses are limited to what you see and feel, Luna, even if I can sort the information more accurately than your conscious mind, and my instincts are a little more attuned and intuitive. "But… it's nothing to be afraid of. Nothing any of us have to be afraid of… it's merely another part of life's great cycle, and we ourselves are all creatures safe from the grasp of most shadows." Nightmare Moon smiled at this as she circled back in front of them, licking her lips slowly as she looked down into Scrivy's eyes. "Do you have a question for me, my handsome husband?" Luna narrowed her eyes slowly at this, but Scrivener met the tall, dark creature's eyes fearlessly, smiling a little before he asked quietly: "Why did you include me in that, Nightmare Moon? I'm not like you or Luna… powerful or even able to take care of myself all that well." "Because after so much time with us… after being with Luna in the ways you have, marrying her, loving her, admiring her, wanting to be like her… and like me… you have been tainted." Nightmare Moon reached up and lovingly stroked under his muzzle with her hoof, murmuring: "You have come to represent everything we so desire… and we know there would be others like you, if they would only give us a chance. Twilight is so close to being blessed with our darkness too… even if she is already marked clearly by Celestia's light." She grimaced at this, leaning back a bit, then returned her eyes to Scrivener Blooms, murmuring softly: "We will not let harm come to you, worry not. Luna and I both need you… for reasons different and the same. But Luna, back to your worries… there is one thing I can tell you, one thing I can confirm, and it's that the Velites are only a symptom. They are charging towards Canterlot, hellbent on revenge, overeager because they feel the darkness all around them. More importantly, what I am saying is that killing them will solve nothing, little Luna… even though I know you'll do it anyway. You love to kill, even the already-dead, don't you? Even more than I do, perhaps…" Nightmare Moon gave her a smile that was sultry and dark, and Luna gritted her teeth before the creature threw her head back and laughed. "Demons, spirits, tame monsters becoming malicious and ponies who will one more learn to fear the darkness… in a way, we hate it, but it's a fitting revenge upon their heads for how they treated us, how they never loved our night! But then they will learn that the worst monsters walk arrogantly in the daylight, and that their saviors and heroes slink through the shadows beneath the moon… then we will laugh in their faces when they are saved by the thing they blindly detest!" "I see thou art in no mood for talking calmly, Nightmare Moon. Let us leave, Scrivener Blooms." Luna said moodily, and Scrivy grimaced a bit… then winced when Nightmare Moon stepped forwards, licking slowly up his throat before she firmly kissed him for a few moments, Luna gritting her teeth as a shiver rolled through her body, Scrivy wincing even as his mouth moved in return against hers… and Nightmare Moon drew slowly back after a few long moment, licking her lips almost greedily. "You kissed me back. Yes… delightful." Nightmare Moon whispered, and then she stepped slowly backwards, her eyes becoming glowing white lamps in the shadows, her mane brightly shining as the light vanished from around them, the only thing visible for a few long moments the Nightmare's starlight mane and the ivory lanterns of her eyes as she said softly: "Don't worry, little Scrivener Blooms. One day, Luna will understand the only path to her salvation lays in the abyss… and then there will only be Nightmare Moon…" "Silence!" Luna shouted… and reality trembled around them before Luna and Scrivener both threw themselves to their hooves, panting and grimacing as they looked back and forth. They were back in the den, standing on top of their bedding, facing the fireplace… and then Luna trembled and looked up at Scrivy as he looked back at her, before she stepped towards him and buried her face against the side of his neck as he hugged her fiercely. There was no need for words as they curled tightly together… and slowly, bit-by-bit, Luna calmed before she straightened and muttered: "I am nothing but a wrecked vessel today, Scrivener Blooms. And Nightmare Moon… well, my hopes were both met and dashed at once. She reacts well to thy presence… but all too well, showing off and… aggressively seeking…" She shook her head, then laughed a little as she looked at him, rubbing at one of her cheeks with a grimace. "All too well I see the resemblance, though, in her actions and my own oft-immodest behaviors. Still, she has confirmed my already-voiced worries… but what truly concerns me now is that we have yet to actually see a Velite for our own selves. In years' past, they were not creatures of great stealth or slyness… but perhaps the ages spent in the tunnels deep under the earth have allowed them to modify their wicked behaviors." Scrivy grimaced a little at this thought, nodding slowly as he gazed at her quietly… and Luna gave him a faint smile in return, saying quietly: "Well, in spite of whatever may come, we shall deal with it as events occur." The male nodded to her slowly… and the two settled quietly back down in the den, slowly relaxing in each other's company as they pressed together for comfort, worried for the dark days ahead, but determined to force their way through and make the best of what they had, together. Top ↑ Category:Transcript Category:Story